Thursday, October 09, 2014

King Street Thugs lose again

From the press release...

(Yesterday), the Texas Democratic Party prevailed in King Street Patriots v. Texas Democratic Party, when the Texas Court of Appeals for the Third District confirmed a lower court decision to uphold provisions of Texas campaign finance law. [Campaign Legal Center, 10/8/2014]

The Texas Democratic Party’s suit alleged that the King Street Patriots had made in-kind contributions to the Republican Party of Texas. These donations would have been a violation of the restrictions on corporate political contributions. They also failed to register as a “political committee” and comply with Texas Disclosure Law. In response, the King Street Patriots filed a counterclaim that challenged the constitutionality of parts of Texas’ campaign finance laws. [Houston Chronicle, 3/28/2012]

Update: Quorum Report had more (including the "blast from the past" link to Hair Balls).

The controversial conservative group King Street Patriots on Wednesday lost its appeal to exempt itself from the Texas Election Code, paving the way for the group to file a writ before the Texas Supreme Court.

The Patriots were a serious source of contention during the 2010 elections in Houston, where they were accused of intimidating voters at the polls. The patriots, who called themselves poll watchers, were well known for their campaign called “True the Vote.”

The Texas Democratic Party sued the King Street Patriots, alleging it needed to register as a political action committee under the Texas Election Code. The King Street Patriots, which refused to participate in discovery, counter-sued the Texas Democratic Party and the party chairs in Harris and Dallas counties, saying they were an independent non-partisan non-profit group exempt from registration.

Even Alex Jones gets it: King Street Patriots/True the Vote is hamstrung -- by the terms of the lawsuit they settled with the Democratic Party two years ago -- from doing those things they do to intimidate voters and suppress voting. Court-compelled designation as a PAC restricts their special brand of bullshit even further. But that won't stop them, in fact will barely slow them down.

Some of you may have seen Campos' post (also here) about the surge in D mailed ballots. Sidebar: it's a credit to Glen Maxey -- someone I have excoriated here in the recent past -- and county chairs like Lane Lewis (Harris) and Don Bankston (Fort Bend) to have executed what appears to be a very successful strategy to increase this level of turnout to nearly presidential-year levels. It's got the Republicans running scared. In particular, it's got Harris County Clerk Stan Stanart terrified.